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Godzilla vs. Biollante
Miramax |rating =PG |releasedate= |rating= |budget=¥700,000,000 |boxoffice=¥1,040,000,000 |runningtime=104 minutes |designs=BioGoji ShodaiRozuBio ShodaiBio |website= |previous=''The Return of Godzilla'' |next=''Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah'' }}Godzilla vs. Biollante is a 1989 produced by Toho Company Ltd.. It's the seventeenth installment in the ''Godzilla'' series as well as the second in the Heisei series. The film was released to Japanese theaters on December 16, 1989. Godzilla vs. Biollante was directed by Kazuki Omori, produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka, and written by both Kazuki, and Shinichiro Kobayashi. This film deals with a scientist inadvertently creating a monster through genetic tampering, while in mourning, which then goes on the combat Godzilla who's been released from his volcanic tomb. A sequel to this film, Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, was released on December 14, 1991. Plot In 1984, a scientific team picks through the ruins of Tokyo, searching for tissue samples left behind by the monster Godzilla following his rampage there only a few hours earlier. The creature had returned after 30 years, and had reduced Tokyo to rubble. After destroying the J.S.D.F.'s Super X, the monster had been lured to Mount Mihara, where an eruption had been triggered that sealed the titan within the volcano. The scientific team soon find what they are looking for, but as they continue to search, a team of American paramilitary soldiers working for a United States-based genetics research company called Bio-Major ambushes them and steals the cell samples. As they flee with their prize, they are ambushed themselves by a lone mercenary, who kills the commandos and steals the cells back. The mysterious man, a killer known only as SSS9, then takes the cells to the Republic of Saradia, an OPEC nation in the Middle East, where Japanese geneticist Genshiro Shiragami and his daughter Erika take charge of them. Shiragami is working with the Saradian government on a project to genetically breed a new species of plant capable of living in the arid Saradian deserts. This, the government hopes, will gradually take the country away from relying only on oil exports for profit, and will hopefully make them the worlds largest grain exporter. However, before this can become a reality, the lab where the Godzilla cells are being stored is bombed by Bio-Major agents, and the cells are destroyed. Shiragami's daughter, Erika, is killed in the blast, and the distraught scientist returns to Japan, unwilling to continue his research. Five years later, in 1989, Japan has, for the most part, recovered from Godzilla's attack. Shiagami has kept Erika's keep-sake roses alive for all this time, and has even spliced her genes into the plants in hopes that she might continue to live within them. After five years of wondering if this is even possible, he calls the Japanese Psyonics Research Center, who send two psychics, Asuka Okouchi and Miki Saegusa, to test the roses for psychic energy. Miki, only seventeen years old, is an incredibly gifted psychic, and as she analyzes the roses, she can hear the voice of a girl calling Asuka's name. As the two women leave, they do not know that they are being watched. In the trees rests a truck, and from the window two Bio-Major agents, John Lee and Michael Low, look on. As it turns out, they have been watching Shiragami for several years. Little do they know that they too are under surveillance. Behind them, the Saradian agent that stole the Godzilla cells in 1984 watches in silence. Asuka Okouchi is the daughter of Seido Okochi, founder and head of the Okochi Foundation, a genetic research institute. Her boyfriend, Kazuhito Kirishima, is a geneticist as well, but has recently become very concerned with the ethics of his work. He believes that if the scientists are not careful, they may create something terrible, something never intended to exist on the planet Earth. He fears that Okouchi's view of science, that being a way to gain power and money, goes against what science is really all about. However, as he is dating Okouchi's daughter and his lab is funded by the Okouchi Foundation, there is little he can do to voice his opinions. Meanwhile, a small eruption at Mt. Mihara begins to worry the Japanese government. Godzilla has remained interred within the mountain for the last five years, and it is now becoming clear that the creature is stirring within. The Japanese begin their planning for the monster's return, and prepare several defenses. Lt. Sho Kuroki of the JSDF, along with Goro Gondo of the National Land Bureau's Godzilla Unit, begin to organize and prepare. The JSDF has constructed the Super X2, a vastly improved version of the machine that fought Godzilla in 1984. The machine is now semi-aquatic, capable of functioning under water, and now features a vast array of weapons. The new mech also possesses a "Fire Mirror", capable of deflecting Godzilla's atomic ray back at him. The government also has another trick up their sleeves: they are planning to develop a biological weapon called the Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria (ANEB). The bacteria, designed to break down nuclear energy, was originally intended to clean up atomic waste. However, as the bacteria eats nuclear material, it could, theoretically, be used against Godzilla, who feeds off nuclear energy. However, the ANEB cannot be created without Godzilla cells. As it turns out, the cells of the King of the Monsters contain a special set of nuclear-eating genes that are used to power up the creature. These genes are needed to make the ANEB, and much like snake venom can be used to create an antidote for snake poisoning, it is believed that the G-cells can be used to create a chemical that can poison and kill Godzilla himself. A group of cells recovered in 1984 are now stored at the Okouchi Foundation, safe from terrorists such as the Bio-Major agents. Kirishima and Kuroki attempt to lobby Dr. Shiragami to join the project, but he flatly refuses. He blames the G-cells for his daughter's death five years earlier, and has no intention of getting involved with them again. Several days later, Mt. Mihara erupts, spewing lava all across Oshima Island. The resulting earthquakes hit Japan and injure Shiragami's roses. Fearing that Erika may die if the roses perish, he formulates a plan. He joins the ANEB project, but only on one condition: he is to keep the Godzilla cells for the one week until the project begins. On a dark and stormy night, Shiragami sits alone in his lab. Before him lie several rose petals and the Godzilla cells. Under his microscope, he carefully isolates one G-cell and one cell from the rose, and then, ever so carefully, combines the two together. Now, he hopes, his daughter will live forever in a plant given the regenerative properties of Godzilla himself. Several days later, Bio-Major's agents break into Shiragami's lab. Unbeknownst to them, SSS9 also breaks in. When the thieves and the assassin catch each other, a gunfight ensues. It is interrupted by an attack of a giant, mobile plant that kills Low and attacks SS9. Lee flees, while the assassin barely escapes from the plant's grasp. They do not realize that they have just encountered the result of Dr. Shiragami's secret experiments. The next morning a giant flower is seen in Lake Ashi, and Dr. Shiragami confesses that he combined the DNA of roses with Godzilla cells. Furthermore, he confesses to Asuka, Miki and Kirishima that in a fit of desperate grief, he added Erika's DNA to the mutated genetic structure, so that some of the creature is composed of Erika as well. He names his creation Biollante. Meanwhile, Bio-Major anonymously sends a letter to the Diet of Japan, informing them that they have planted several bombs inside Mt. Mihara. If the Anti-Nuclear Bacteria is not handed over, the company threatens to detonate the bombs and release Godzilla. With the country held hostage, the Diet is forced to comply, sending Colonel Gondo and Dr. Kirishima to hand over the ANEB to Bio-Major's agent John Lee. However, the exchange is interrupted when SSS9 opens fire on them before the explosives can be disarmed. Lee tries to drive away in his truck, but is killed by a sniper bullet to the head, causing the truck to be overturned. SSS9 retrieves the ANEB and escapes, while Gondo and Kirishima are unable to disarm the explosives. Godzilla is released as Mt. Mihara erupts. Upon hearing Godzilla's roar, Biollante's blossom opens, and the monstrous plant begins calling out to Godzilla. Dr. Shiragami theorizes that this is because both Godzilla and Biollante are essentially the same being. With Godzilla's destination made clear, the Japan Self-Defense Forces, under the leadership of Sho Kuroki, prepare their strategies for dealing with the King of the Monsters. The Super X2 is deployed against Godzilla in the ocean, and though it at first seems effective in combating Godzilla, it is eventually overwhelmed by Godzilla's atomic breath, and is forced to retreat. Later on, Godzilla finally reaches Biollante at the lake. As Godzilla stares at the monstrous plant, Biollante panics and attacks him, and a huge battle ensues, and briefly it appears that there is a stalemate. However, Godzilla seemingly defeats Biollante by burning her alive with his atomic breath, only for it to be revealed that Biollante is immortal as she escapes by dissolving into spores that float into outer space. Victorious for now and running low on nuclear energy following his last two battles, Godzilla heads towards the nearest operational nuclear reactor, which is located in Tsuruga, on the other side of the country. The military is sent out to meet Godzilla at Iso Bay. However, Godzilla unexpectedly surfaces in Osaka Bay, avoiding a confrontation with the JSDF. Saegusa tries to help, attempting to make Godzilla turn away from Osaka using her psychic abilities. Her efforts distract Godzilla momentarily, but the force of Godzilla's will and his psychic brainpower overwhelms her, causing her to faint. A plan is put into action, involving infecting Godzilla with the ANEB, which was retrieved by Gondo and Kirishima from the Saradia Oil Corporation's Osaka office. Kuroki sends the still-damaged Super X2 to distract Godzilla while Gondo and his team prepare rockets loaded with ANEB. Godzilla destroys the craft with a blast of atomic breath, but Gondo and his team manage to get in position. Godzilla is infected with three rockets, including one fired directly into his mouth, but he kills Gondo and continues on, seemingly unaffected by the ANEB. The failure of the bacteria to work is attributed to Godzilla's low body temperature, which keeps the bacteria in a near-dormant state. If Godzilla can be heated, Shiragami theorizes, then the ANB should work. The JSDF develops another plan: force Godzilla onto a field of microwave-emitting plates during an artificial thunderstorm, where it will be heated by the microwaves and a unit of MBT-92 Maser Cannons. The operation begins, but it seems that Godzilla is not affected by the microwaves as he easily destroys the J.S.D.F.'s forces. Just as everything seems lost, a low rumble is heard and Biollante's spores rain down from the sky. Suddenly, Biollante's gigantic evolved form emerges from the ground, obliterating the J.S.D.F.'s remaining forces. Biollante attacks Godzilla and this time has the advantage. When Biollante attempts to bite down on Godzilla's head, he fires his atomic breath directly into her mouth, causing it to explode out the back of her head. Godzilla then begins to be affected by the ANEB, due to Biollante's corrosive sap raising his temperature. Godzilla tries to walk away but collapses headfirst into the ocean. With Godzilla temporarily knocked out, Biollante dissolves into spores and escapes into space again. As the monster's essence floats upwards, Dr. Shiragami sees the image of his daughter among the spores. Calling out to her, he walks forward and is shot and killed by SSS9, who was ordered by his government to kill Shiragami now that the cells were lost. Dr. Kirishima chases the agent and fights him. The agent is at a disadvantage until he is able to grab his weapon again. The Saradian agent attempts to kill Kirishima, but Major Kuroki activates an artificial lightning generator that SSS9 is standing on, disintegrating him. The characters celebrate their victory when Godzilla suddenly rises, his body temperature lowered by the water. However, Godzilla simply swims away, leaving Japan safe for the time being. Kirishima and Asuka leave together in Kirishima's car. The body of Dr. Shiragami is placed inside a tent, Dr. Okouchi briefly mourning him before leaving. Erika is heard to briefly comment on the recent events. Godzilla is seen swimming away, while Biollante is visible as a giant rose floating near the Earth in outer space. Staff Cast Appearances Monsters *Godzilla (BioGoji) *Biollante Weapons *Anti-Nuclear Energy Bacteria *Hyper Laser Cannon (Stock Footage) *Oxygen Destroyer (Cameo) Vehicles *AH-1 Cobra *DD-122 Hatsuyuki *DDH-142 Haruna Class Destroyer *HSS-2B *Hughes 500C *KV-107 II Helicopter *M110A2 Self-Propelled Howitzer *M6000 T.C. System *MBT-92 *Mitsubishi F-15J *Super X (Stock Footage) *Super X2 *Type 73 APC *Type 74 Tank *Type 75 MSSR *Type 82 Command Vehicle *Type 90 Tank *UH-1B Huey Production Godzilla vs. Biollante began as a winner of a contest by Toho. The concept was created by Shinichiro Kobayashi, a dentist, though his script was widely different from the final film. The few parts that remained were Erika's death, Biollante's creation, a psychic girl, and for the most part, the ending. This first draft also had Dr. Shiragami create a rat-fish hybrid monster named Deutalios who was quickly killed by Godzilla. This was cut and replaced by Godzilla's battles with Biollante's rose stage and the Super X2. In another ending, Biollante begins to lose and makes a final attempt to kill Godzilla by turning into a wave of pure energy which Godzilla would absorb. Alternate titles *''Big Dinosaurs'' (大恐龍; Taiwan) *''Godzilla, the Ancient Giant'' (Godzilla, der Urgigant; Germany) *''Godzilla 1990'' (1990ก็อตซิลลา; Thailand) *''Godzilla 2'' (Mexico) Theatrical releases *Japan - December 16, 1989 *Portugal - December 17, 1989 *Taiwan - January 31, 1990 *South Korea - February 15, 1990 U.S. release After Godzilla vs. Biollante was released in Japan, Toho commissioned a Hong Kong-based company called Omni Productions to dub the film into English for their international version. In early 1990, Toho entered discussions with Miramax to distribute the film. When talks broke off, Toho filed a lawsuit in the Los Angeles Federal Court, accusing Miramax of entering an oral agreement in June to pay Toho $500,000 to distribute the film. This lawsuit delayed the film's release for two years. An out of court settlement was reached with Miramax buying the rights to the film for an unreported figure. While Miramax had entertained thoughts of releasing the film in theaters, in the end it was decided to release the film straight to home video instead. HBO released the film on VHS in 1992 and Laserdisc in 1993. Miramax utilized the uncut English international version of the film for this release. The international version of the film was released on video in the United States by HBO Video in association with Miramax on November 25, 1992. The film was released on laserdisc the next year. Godzilla vs. Biollante was released on DVD and Blu-ray disc in North America by Echo Bridge Entertainment through Miramax on December 4, 2012. Godzilla vs. Biollante was the last new Godzilla film to receive a release in the United States until released Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah and Godzilla vs. Mothra on VHS in 1998. Godzilla vs. Biollante was also the last Toho Godzilla film to receive its own international English-language title card. For every film since, Toho has elected to simply digitally superimpose the international title over the Japanese title card (except in the case of Godzilla: Final Wars, whose original title card is in English). Box office Godzilla vs. Biollante had a budget of ¥700,000,000, or $5,000,000. When the film opened in Japan on December 16, 1989, it sold 2,000,000 tickets, earning ¥1,040,000,000, or roughly $7,000,000. Though the film was not a financial failure, it did not perform to Toho's expectations, causing them to place the series on a brief two-year hiatus and elect to bring back King Ghidorah for the next film. Reception Godzilla vs. Biollante is generally a favorite among Godzilla fans. Ed Godziszewski of Monster Zero said the film is "by no means a classic" but felt that "for the first time in well over 20 years, a Godzilla script is presented with some fresh, original ideas and themes." Joseph Savitski of Beyond Hollywood said the film's music is "a major detraction," but added that it's "not only one of the most imaginative films in the series, but also the most enjoyable to watch." Japan Hero said, "this is definitely a Godzilla movie not to be missed." Home media releases Trivia *The Oxygen Destroyer makes a cameo in this film - very briefly in Colonel Gondo's office, the camera shot shows a statue of the KingGoji suit on the desk, and the Oxygen Destroyer is shown resting against the wall. *Special effects director Koichi Kawakita experimented with cell animation and stop-motion for the final fight between Godzilla and Biollante, but both sequences were discarded. *On March 17, 1992, as pre-production work was under way on Godzilla vs. Mothra, someone managed to find their way into Toho's special effects department and stole one of the two BioGoji Godzilla suits that was used in both Godzilla vs. Biollante and Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah, and which was slated to be used in the new film as well. A "Godzilla hunt" was launched for the stolen costume, valued at about $371,000, and it ended when an elderly woman found it in a bamboo patch in the suburbs about a week later (reported in The Hollywood Reporter, March 26, 1992). While the costume was missing, Koichi Kawakita's staff began work on a new one, BatoGoji. *This is the first Godzilla film for actor Koichi Ueda, who would play a role in every Godzilla film afterward until Godzilla: Final Wars. References Do you like Godzilla vs. Biollante? Yes! No. Kind of. de:Godzilla, der Urgigant es:Godzilla vs. Biollante Category:1980s films Category:Japanese films Category:Heisei era - Films (Godzilla franchise)